Date: Mon, 18 Oct 2021 19:46:59 -0700
Reply-To: Alistair Bell <albell@SHAW.CA>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Alistair Bell <albell@SHAW.CA>
Subject: Re: Roadtrip to Canaveral Launch...and then...
In-Reply-To: <900719819.2015676.1634506253051@mail.yahoo.com>
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Richard,
Sorry the trip cut short. I hear you when it comes to back issues . My disc issues are somewhat reduced now, but what gets me in longer van trips is my right knee. Stiffens up and painful. Should get cruise control . I have to limit driving time to under 3 hr stretches to keep that in check.
Gotta love old age …. No :-)
Alistair
> On Oct 17, 2021, at 2:32 PM, Richard Koerner <rjkinpb@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>
> I was Covid grouchy. Hadn't traveled more than 60 miles away in 1.5 years. I decided October would be a splendid month to travel from San Diego to Florida. To see a "real" rocket launch, and of course all the things along the way...at least whatever was open. Had reservations and everything at a campsite called Jetty Park, apparently it's a jetty about 8 miles away from launch pad at Cape Canaveral.
> All went well. Vanagon with Subie 2.2 performed flawlessly. About 22 MPG. Picked up campgrounds along the way, much fun! Well...I was in Arkansas....about 40 miles from Mississippi River...and then it started. Lower back pain. I didn't know if it was Acute Sciatica or just strained lower back muscle. It got bad. Made the decision to cancel and turn back home, it was a difficult decision. You know how it goes. But when you are not having fun, and have to precisely calculate every reaching move, every twisting move...yeah, time to call it a day.
> Funny....I used ALL of my equipment in Vanagon. From Buddy Heater to 5000 BTU window mounted A/C unit. Max elevation was 8600, Min elevation was -14. Even with back pain, my full sized TinTop bed did the job, always slept well. The next morning though, when things stiffened up, was another story.
> Last day was 375 miles from Pichaco Peak State Park north of Tuscon to San Diego.
> Back is resting, and feeling better. Lots of smashed bugs and butterflies to wash off trusty Vanagon, and do a thorough cleanup job inside and out. These are the things roadtrips are made of. But, with total satisfaction, I will state that Vanagon is the way to go. Only saw 1 other...and we gave each other a thumbs up....he was from Washington, probably on this list. Somewhere in western New Mexico.
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